College Football 08!

Since pre-season rankings are a joke, I projected out the records of every team I felt could be bowl-eligible. In the end, I projected records for 80 teams, 8 of which I feel will fall one win shy of becoming bowl eligible. Next I ranked the teams based on my projected final record for each team using the following parameters, in order:

1. Record
2. Quality of Wins
3. Relative amount of improvement/regression over the final half of the season (i.e. 2007 South Carolina Gamecocks scenario)

In the end, I do not expect any undefeated teams. I do expect chaos this season with not one, not two, not three, but 7 one-loss teams! Those teams are: USC, Georgia, Ohio State, Missouri, Clemson, Texas Tech, and Utah. Based largely on quality of wins, I have USC vs. Georgia in the National Championship. In case you're interested, here are the losses for those one-loss teams:

• USC losing at UCLA (12/6)
• Georgia losing at Auburn (11/15)
• Ohio State losing at USC (9/13)
• Clemson losing vs. South Carolina (11/29)
• Missouri losing at Texas (10/18)
• Texas Tech losing at Oklahoma (11/22)
• Utah losing at Michigan (9/30)

My other 3 BCS teams will be Florida, Virginia Tech, and Pitt. So, here is my top 50:

Rank	Previous	Team	Record
1	4	USC	(11-1, 7-1)
2	2	Georgia	(11-1, 7-1)
3	3	Ohio State	(11-1, 8-0)
4	15	Clemson	(11-1, 8-0)
5	5	Missouri	(11-1, 7-1)
6	17	Texas Tech	(11-1, 7-1)
7	20	Florida	(10-2, 7-1)
8	8	Virginia Tech	(10-2, 7-1)
9	9	Oklahoma	(10-2, 6-2)
10	23	Wisconsin	(10-2, 7-1)
11	24	Utah	(11-1, 8-0)
12	6	Kansas	(9-3, 5-3)
13	22	BYU	(10-2, 7-1)
14	NR	Pitt	(10-2, 6-1)
15	21	Illinois	(9-3, 6-2)
16	48	California	(10-2, 7-2)
17	16	Arizona State	(9-3, 7-2)
18	13	Texas	(9-3, 5-3)
19	29	Wake Forest	(9-3, 6-2)
20	7	West Virginia	(8-4, 4-3)
21	14	Auburn	(9-3, 5-3)
22	31	Penn State	(9-3, 5-3)
23	1	LSU	(8-4, 4-4)
24	NR	Central Michigan	(10-2, 8-0)
25	40	Fresno State	(9-3, 7-1)
26	12	Tennessee	(8-4, 5-3)
27	NR	Houston	(10-2, 7-1)
28	49	UCLA	(8-4, 5-4)
29	34	Boise State	(9-3, 7-1)
30	36	Texas A&M	(9-3, 5-3)
31	46	Tulsa	(9-3, 6-2)
32	35	South Florida	(8-4, 4-3)
33	38	TCU	(8-4, 5-3)
34	44	Rutgers	(8-4, 3-4)
35	19	Michigan	(7-5, 4-4)
36	NR	Miami (OH)	(9-3, 8-0)
37	11	Boston College	(7-5, 3-5)
38	27	Oregon State	(7-5, 6-3)
39	28	Arkansas	(7-5, 4-4)
40	NR	Miami (FL)	(7-5, 5-3)
41	39	South Carolina	(7-5, 4-4)
42	NR	Purdue	(7-5, 4-4)
43	NR	Alabama	(7-5, 4-4)
44	33	Connecticut	(7-5, 3-4)
45	10	Hawai'i	(7-6, 5-3)
46	25	Oregon	(6-6, 4-5)
47	41	Oklahoma State	(7-5, 3-5)
48	NR	Nevada	(8-4, 6-2)
49	NR	Florida Atlantic	(8-4, 6-1)
50	42	Central Florida	(7-5, 6-2)

Next Updates

By the end of the weekend, I will attempt to post some thoughts and predictions for the upcoming NFL and College Football Seasons. Until then, enjoy the new baseball post below.

2 Months Later...Updated MLB Ranks

Rank	Pre.	Team	Record	Run Diff.	SOS
1	1	Chicago Cubs	73-47	155	17
2	3	Los Angeles Angels	75-44	63	10
3	4	Tampa Bay Rays	72-47	65	1
4	2	Boston Red Sox	70-51	118	1
5	7	Chicago White Sox	67-52	74	5
6	25	Minnesota Twins	67-53	40	9
7	10	New York Yankees	64-57	38	3
8	12	Milwaukee Brewers	70-51	50	18
9	13	Toronto Blue Jays	62-59	40	7
10	22	New York Mets	64-56	48	27
11	6	St. Louis Cardinals	67-56	38	19
12	5	Philadelphia Phillies	64-56	71	21
13	18	Detroit Tigers	58-62	20	12
14	24	Los Angeles Dodgers	61-59	30	24
15	9	Arizona Diamondbacks	61-59	19	29
16	11	Florida Marlins	63-58	-21	27
17	19	Houston Astros	61-59	-24	15
18	15	Texas Rangers	61-60	-45	11
19	16	Baltimore Orioles	57-62	-14	3
20	8	Oakland Athletics	55-64	4	8
21	29	Kansas City Royals	54-66	-93	5
22	23	Cleveland Indians	54-65	9	12
23	20	Atlanta Braves	55-65	9	23
24	27	Colorado Rockies	54-68	-72	25
25	14	Pittsburgh Pirates	55-65	-81	16
26	17	Cincinnati Reds	53-68	-99	19
27	30	Seattle Mariners	46-74	-84	12
28	26	San Francisco Giants	50-69	-106	26
29	21	San Diego Padres	46-74	-109	29
30	28	Washington Nationals	44-77	-143	21

With approximately 40 games remaining for each team, here are my projected final standings:

AL EAST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Boston Red Sox	93-69	0	0.574
*Tampa Bay Rays	92-70	1	0.568
New York Yankees	88-74	5	0.543
Toronto Blue Jays	84-78	9	0.519
Baltimore Orioles	71-97	22	0.438
AL CENTRAL
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Chicago White Sox	87-75	0	0.537
Minnesota Twins	84-78	3	0.519
Detroit Tigers	83-79	4	0.512
Cleveland Indians	79-83	8	0.488
Kansas City Royals	73-89	14	0.451
AL WEST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Los Angeles Angels	97-65	0	0.599
Texas Rangers	80-82	17	0.494
Oakland Athletics	73-89	24	0.451
Seattle Mariners	72-90	25	0.444
* = Wildcard Winner
NL EAST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
New York Mets	88-74	0	0.543
Philadelphia Phillies	86-76	2	0.531
Florida Marlins	79-83	9	0.488
Atlanta Braves	79-83	9	0.488
Washington Nationals	62-100	26	0.383
NL CENTRAL
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Chicago Cubs	97-65	0	0.599
*Milwaukee Brewers	93-69	4	0.574
St. Louis Cardinals	84-78	13	0.519
Houston Astros	78-84	19	0.481
Pittsburgh Pirates	74-88	23	0.457
Cincinnati Reds	73-89	24	0.451
NL WEST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Los Angeles Dodgers	85-77	0	0.525
Arizona Diamondbacks	83-79	2	0.512
Colorado Rockies	74-88	11	0.457
San Francisco Giants	69-93	16	0.426
San Diego Padres	68-94	17	0.420
* = Wildcard Winner
ALDS	Result
Rays @ Angels	LAA 3-2
White Sox @ Red Sox	BOS 3-2
NLDS	Result
Brewers @ Mets	MIL 3-2
Dodgers @ Cubs	CHC 3-1
ALCS	Result
Red Sox @ Angels	LAA 4-1
NLCS	Result
Brewers @ Cubs	CHC 4-3
World Series	Result
Angels vs. Cubs	CHC 4-2

Friday the 13th MLB Rankings

Rank	LW	Team	Record	Run Diff.	SOS
1	1	Chicago Cubs	43-24	102	12
2	2	Boston Red Sox	42-27	61	9
3	5	Los Angeles Angels	41-26	7	17
4	3	Tampa Bay Devil Rays	38-28	24	1
5	13	Philadelphia Phillies	40-28	74	26
6	6	St. Louis Cardinals	40-28	40	20
7	11	Chicago White Sox	37-29	63	13
8	7	Oakland Athletics	35-31	45	11
9	4	Arizona Diamondbacks	36-31	39	30
10	15	New York Yankees	34-33	-6	23
11	8	Florida Marlins	36-30	-1	28
12	22	Milwaukee Brewers	35-31	-2	4
13	12	Toronto Blue Jays	34-34	25	7
14	19	Pittsburgh Pirates	33-34	-20	2
15	20	Texas Rangers	34-34	-13	24
16	21	Baltimore Orioles	32-33	-19	6
17	23	Cincinnati Reds	32-36	-29	3
18	24	Detroit Tigers	29-37	-20	14
19	9	Houston Astros	33-34	-16	4
20	10	Atlanta Braves	32-35	33	17
21	29	San Diego Padres	30-38	-55	27
22	17	New York Mets	31-34	-1	29
23	18	Cleveland Indians	31-36	19	25
24	14	Los Angeles Dodgers	31-35	6	17
25	16	Minnesota Twins	32-35	-41	15
26	28	San Francisco Giants	30-37	-31	20
27	26	Colorado Rockies	26-40	-67	15
28	25	Washington Nationals	26-42	-85	8
29	27	Kansas City Royals	26-41	-71	20
30	30	Seattle Mariners	24-42	-64	9

Memorial Day Power Rankings

Rank	LW	Team	Record	Run Diff.	SOS
1	2	Chicago Cubs	29-21	79	9
2	3	Boston Red Sox	31-22	33	6
3	12	Tampa Bay Devil Rays	30-20	29	1
4	1	Arizona Diamondbacks	30-20	63	29
5	4	Los Angeles Angels	30-22	11	16
6	7	St. Louis Cardinals	30-22	29	30
7	8	Oakland Athletics	28-23	48	10
8	17	Florida Marlins	29-20	11	21
9	13	Houston Astros	29-23	4	16
10	16	Atlanta Braves	27-23	46	23
11	20	Chicago White Sox	27-22	37	19
12	11	Toronto Blue Jays	27-25	8	3
13	10	Philadelphia Phillies	28-24	33	26
14	5	Los Angeles Dodgers	26-23	18	25
15	9	New York Yankees	25-25	-1	12
16	15	Minnesota Twins	25-25	-16	15
17	6	New York Mets	23-25	5	16
18	19	Cleveland Indians	23-27	14	10
19	28	Pittsburgh Pirates	24-26	-27	4
20	30	Texas Rangers	26-26	-14	27
21	18	Baltimore Orioles	24-25	-14	7
22	14	Milwaukee Brewers	23-27	-26	2
23	29	Cincinnati Reds	23-28	-30	8
24	21	Detroit Tigers	21-29	-18	19
25	25	Washington Nationals	22-29	-46	4
26	27	Colorado Rockies	20-30	-43	24
27	23	Kansas City Royals	21-29	-48	13
28	24	San Francisco Giants	20-31	-55	13
29	26	San Diego Padres	19-33	-71	21
30	22	Seattle Mariners	18-33	-59	28

5/6 Power Rankings

Rank	LW	Team	Record	Run Diff.	SOS
1	1	Arizona Diamondbacks	21-11	47	25
2	2	Chicago Cubs	18-14	50	18
3	4	Boston Red Sox	21-13	22	8
4	8	Los Angeles Angels	21-13	10	19
5	9	Los Angeles Dodgers	18-14	41	29
6	5	New York Mets	16-14	-1	1
7	13	St. Louis Cardinals	21-12	30	27
8	16	Oakland Athletics	20-14	39	14
9	3	New York Yankees	17-16	3	16
10	20	Philadelphia Phillies	19-14	20	28
11	7	Toronto Blue Jays	16-17	14	13
12	19	Tampa Bay Devil Rays	16-15	7	4
13	23	Houston Astros	16-16	8	10
14	11	Milwaukee Brewers	16-15	-10	2
15	21	Minnesota Twins	16-14	-6	22
16	26	Atlanta Braves	15-15	39	30
17	14	Florida Marlins	17-14	-14	26
18	15	Baltimore Orioles	16-16	-11	20
19	24	Cleveland Indians	14-17	4	9
20	10	Chicago White Sox	14-16	19	21
21	25	Detroit Tigers	14-19	-19	23
22	6	Seattle Mariners	14-19	-4	15
23	17	Kansas City Royals	14-17	-30	24
24	29	San Francisco Giants	14-18	-39	3
25	30	Washington Nationals	14-18	-32	11
26	12	San Diego Padres	12-20	-43	7
27	22	Colorado Rockies	12-20	-36	6
28	18	Pittsburgh Pirates	12-19	-30	17
29	27	Cincinnati Reds	13-20	-30	5
30	28	Texas Rangers	13-20	-48	12

4/17 Power Rankings

Rank	LW	Team	Record	Run Diff.	SOS
1	11	Arizona Diamondbacks	11-4	40	6
2	6	Chicago Cubs	9-5	12	15
3	5	New York Yankees	9-7	0	8
4	9	Boston Red Sox	9-7	-6	13
5	2	New York Mets	7-6	20	19
6	3	Seattle Mariners	8-8	4	20
7	12	Toronto Blue Jays	8-7	22	9
8	15	Los Angeles Angels	9-7	6	22
9	4	Los Angeles Dodgers	7-8	18	10
10	18	Chicago White Sox	9-5	25	27
11	10	Milwaukee Brewers	8-6	7	5
12	13	San Diego Padres	8-7	-8	25
13	25	St. Louis Cardinals	11-4	20	23
14	29	Florida Marlins	9-5	-9	29
15	30	Baltimore Orioles	8-7	-7	24
16	26	Oakland Athletics	9-7	5	16
17	22	Kansas City Royals	9-6	6	21
18	21	Pittsburgh Pirates	7-8	-16	18
19	20	Tampa Bay Devil Rays	6-9	10	12
20	14	Philadelphia Phillies	7-8	-3	28
21	28	Minnesota Twins	7-8	-3	4
22	16	Colorado Rockies	6-8	-17	2
23	27	Houston Astros	6-9	-2	3
24	8	Cleveland Indians	5-10	-21	11
25	1	Detroit Tigers	5-10	-31	17
26	7	Atlanta Braves	5-9	10	30
27	17	Cincinnati Reds	6-9	-12	7
28	19	Texas Rangers	6-9	-10	14
29	23	San Francisco Giants	6-10	-32	1
30	24	Washington Nationals	4-11	-28	26